Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) member Sharmila Faruqui criticized Defence Minister Khawaja Asif for his derogatory remarks against women parliamentarians during Tuesday’s joint sitting of the parliament. Asif had referred to female senators from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party as “koora karkat (trash),” “garbage,” and “leftovers” of PTI Chairman Imran Khan, drawing widespread criticism.
In response to Asif’s comments, Faruqui expressed her dismay about the state of politics and considered it a collective failure of society. She emphasized the challenges women in politics face in a sensitive environment and asserted that women often have to endure much more. She criticized the male-dominated society and noted that women excel in their professions more than their male counterparts.
Faruqui expressed her sadness at the need to condemn such derogatory remarks and stressed that insulting a woman is, in essence, insulting one’s own mother and daughter.
Khawaja Asif later clarified his remarks, stating that they were not gender-specific and were in response to PTI Senator Ali Zafar’s objections about the passage of bills. Asif claimed his remark had no gender specification and was not directed solely at women. He suggested that if the opposition claimed gender equality, they should tolerate such references.
However, the opposition members demanded an apology from Asif, which he refused to give unless they also apologized for derogatory remarks made by their own leader against PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz.
Asif maintained that his remarks were not directed at women and were wrongly branded as gender-specific. He argued that his comments were directed collectively towards the entire opposition’s presence, not just women parliamentarians.